During the Budget speech for the state on Thursday (9 March 2023), Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced that two significant transit projects will initiate for Nashik shortly.
These include the Nashik Neo Metro and Nashik-Pune semi-highspeed rail.
As per report by TOI, the Deputy CM stated, the detailed project report (DPR) for the Nashik Metro Neo project has already been sent to the central government for approval, and the work shall commence with the Centre’s consent.
Furthermore, he mentioned that the state government will provide the funding for the its share in the project expenditure for the proposed Nashik-Pune semi-highspeed rail.
This development is followed by the progress of the Nashik Metro Neo, as the MahaMetro gave a presentation on the metro proposal to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) in Delhi on 15 February 2023.
Brijesh Dixit, the managing director of MahaMetro, gave a detailed presentation to share in-depth information about the entire Metro Neo project — with technical specifications and the detailed project report (DPR). (read more on this)
According to the officials from MahaMetro, the project will be undertaken once it receives the approval of the Union cabinet. The officials believe that the approval will be granted and are optimistic about the success of the project.
Additionally, for the Nashik-Pune rail project, the MahaRail is currently in the process of reworking the DPR to address the inputs which were recently suggested by the Railway minister, Ashwini Vaishnaw.
The Maharashtra Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (MahaRail) is responsible for the development of the semi-high speed rail.
The agency has already begun acquiring land in the Nashik, Ahmednagar, and Pune districts.
The proposed Nashik-Pune semi-highspeed rail project is set to connect the two significant cities in the region.
The benefits will not be limited to passengers for a more convenient mode of transport, but the project also promises to uplift the economy of the entire area, including Ahmednagar, Dhule, and Jalgaon.
Earlier while addressing a meeting, the Deputy CM stated that the rail corridor will become a significant economic corridor in the state when it is finished and will be beneficial also to farmers, cargo carriers, and others. The trains will be moving at a speed of 200 km per hour.